Publicity Stunt
by cupcakeaddict100
Summary: Boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, and they live happily ever after, right? Wrong. In Hollywood, relationships include publicists, scandals, tabloids, and lots and lots of drama.
1. Chapter 1

The buzzing of Jade's cell phone against her bedside table was what woke her up out of her deep slumber. She jumped up instantly and looked around. Okay good, she was in her own bedroom. She wasn't in some random guy's musty old studio apartment.

Speaking of guys, Jade vaguely remembered meeting some guy at the bar she went to last night. The typical tall, dark, and handsome type that Hollywood was flooded with. She turned her head slightly and saw him in bed next to her, his face buried in her pillow, the sheet barely covering him.

"Not bad, Jade." She said to herself, quietly. She felt awful. Her head was pounding, she was tired, and she could still taste the tequila on her tongue.

Her phone rang again, startling her. She reached over and grabbed it, answering it without bothering to check the caller ID.

"Do you know what time it is?" She hissed.

"Yes, it's a quarter til ten. Good morning, sunshine."

Jade sighed upon realizing who was on the other end of the phone call. It was her agent, Charlotte. "Good morning, Charlie."

"We were supposed to have a meeting over an hour ago. Did you forget that?"

"Yeah, I must've slept through my alarm. I'm sorry."

"You have thirty minutes to get to my office."

"Thirty minutes?" Jade repeated. "It takes me thirty minutes to make sure my eyeliner is perfect."

"Thirty minutes!" And with that, Charlotte hung up on Jade.

Jade rolled out of her bed and walked over to the chair sitting by the window. There was a robe strewn across it, so she grabbed it and put it on.

The guy in her bed was still out like a light. He needed to go, like ASAP. Jade couldn't believe she even let a guy sleep over at her place.

She reached out and kicked the guy's leg. "Hey. Hey, wake up!"

He was a deep sleeper. When kicking him didn't work, she kicked the bedpost. It shook and he woke up with a start.

"What's going on?"

"You need to leave." Jade said, not bothering start the conversation off with pleasantries.

"What?" The guy sat up and stretched his arms above his head.

"Get up, get out. I need to start my day."

"Yikes, no coffee before I go?"

Jade rolled her eyes and walked over to her closet. She opened the door and pulled out the first few things she could find, which happened to be a pair of jeans and an old NSync concert tee.

"There's a Starbucks down the block."

"Oh, okay. I see how it is..."

Realizing that the guy was fishing for her name, Jade replied, "...Jade."

"Jade. Jade, what?"

"Spencer."

"Well, I'm Beck Oliver. Nice to meet you, Jade Spencer."

Jade didn't reply. She just continued to put on her clothes.

"Okay, I'm getting the hint, doll face. You want me gone."

"Mhmm."

Beck rolled out of Jade's bed, in search for his clothes. Jade, paying him absolutely no mind to him, walked into her bathroom. She left the door open just in case he tried to steal from her.

While he was getting dressed, Beck looked around the bedroom. It was pretty huge. The big room was dark because the dark purple curtains were drawn, but the large canopy bed was pushed up against the back wall. Almost everything was asylum white, from the walls, to the dressers, to the bed, to the rug. The only other color Beck saw was the purple, but it wasn't much. Just the curtains, sheets, and a chaise lounge chair pushed up by the window.

When Jade came out of her bathroom, Beck was putting on his shoes. He looked up at her. A flashback of the previous night quickly entered his mind. Jade wearing a skintight red dress and high heels, long shiny black hair, drinking tequila, dancing with him. It was a complete 180 from the woman standing in front of him now, makeup free, wearing a faded tee-shirt and blue jeans. Either way, she was still stunning to him.

"Last night was really fun. We should do it again sometime."

Jade instantly scoffed at that. "I don't think so."

"Excuse me?"

"While last night was fun, this was a one night stand." Jade said. "I'm not really interested in _this_ ," Jade gestured between the two of them, "going past my bedroom."

"Well, you really know how to let a guy down easy."

Jade bit her lip. That did sound really harsh not that she actually said it. She sighed, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for-"

"It's totally fine, I'm a big boy. I mean, I'm not really used to rejection, but I guess I'll get over it."

"You're just the pretty boy who's used to getting your way?"

Beck lowered his head, almost as if he was shy. "Not really, no."

Jade smirked. "There's a first time for everything, Beck Oliver."

"True." Beck smiled and rocked back and forth slightly on his feet. "Well, how do we end this?"

Jade bent down and reached under her bed for a pair of shoes. She came out with a pair of black flip flops. "What do you mean?"

"Do we shake hands? Hug? Awkwardly walk to your front door?"

"This ends with you leaving and me finishing getting dressed." Jade deadpanned. She got up and kissed Beck on the cheek. "Thank you for last night. Have a nice day."

"You too, Jade."

* * *

As Beck waited for his agent to arrive at The Ritz, he pulled out his cell phone. One missed call from his mother and a few Twitter notifications that he would have to go through later.

After his waiter brought him his soda and walked off, Beck's mind wandered back to the woman he spent last night and part of this morning with. He liked her. She was gorgeous, she was aloof, she had a sense of humor. Too bad she didn't want to see him again.

He opened up the first search engine he could find and typed in _Jade Spencer_ , hoping something would pop up. That girl intrigued him, and something about her seemed...familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.

Seconds later, he was flooded with pictures, blog posts, fan pages, and tons of pictures. Glamorous photoshoots, fan taken pictures, pictures from runways in New York, Milan, Paris, posts on social media pages and paparazzi shots.

"A model." Beck whispered, biting his lip. He clicked on the first article he could fine.

' _Jade Spencer sits down with Lavish Magazine to dish on modeling, family, and dealing with Hollywood. Written by Belle Thompson._

 _When I walked into Jade's apartment, I didn't know what to expect. With the title of Hollywood's New Bad Girl under her belt, would I be running into a woman who threw BlackBerry cell phones (I kid, I kid)? Would she even want to talk to me?_

 _She opened the doors, the first thing that hit me was the smell of mangoes. It took me a few seconds to notice the candle burning on her living room coffee table._

 _But that only lasted with me a few seconds because Jade wrapped me in a tight hug, something I wasn't expecting at all._

 _"Hi, so nice to meet you. I'm Jade Spencer."_

 _Jade invited me in and told me to sit down. She was nervous, I could tell. She went around the living room, tidying up even though the place was spotless to the naked eye, she offered me every drink under the sun, from lemonade to coffee (No soda however. Jade didn't drink it). And was voice, deep and raspy, shook slightly when she introduced herself. This was her first real interview so I guess that is to be expected._

 _After arguing me down and convincing me to have a glass of iced green tea, Jade was finally seated across from me. Her hair was up in a neat ballerina bun, she wore a simple red t-shirt, and jeans, and she had a pair of brink green fuzzy socks on. For someone who was projected to be one of this generations biggest supermodels within the next decade, she was surprisingly casual._

 _ **BT:** Can I just start by saying you have a lovely apartment._

 _ **JS:** Thank you. I can't take credit for it, however. I gave my mom carte blanche and this was the end result._

 _ **BT:** Mom's know best, right?_

 _ **JS** : Yeah, she's never steered me wrong._

 _ **BT:** Are you two close?_

 _ **JS:** As close as two people can be. For twenty two years, it's just been the two of us._

 _Jade's mother, Karen Spencer, an art dealer and owner of her own exhibit, was a single mother. Jade never knew her father growing up._

 _ **JS:** My mom said that the guy, my father, was toxic. He was bad news and wasn't on the right path. He couldn't be a father, so for my protection she left and never looked back. And it takes a strong woman to just...know when to walk away._

 _ **BT:** Have you struggled with that?_

 _ **JS:** I did, I think I still do. Some days I don't think about him, and on other days he's constantly running through my mind. But if he's as bad and toxic as my mom said he was, then I'm okay with not knowing him. I'm at a point in my life where I don't need or want any negative vibes._

 _ **BT:** Are you ever interested in meeting him?_

 _ **JS:** Definitely, yes. I just have to work up the nerve to actually do it._

 _When we finished talking about her family life, Jade apologized for the bags under her eyes. She explained that she only flew in my New York 5 hours ago, and had yet to fall asleep._

 _ **BT:** Has your modeling career taught you any time management?_

 _ **JS:** Definitely. I've learned to value any and all spare time. I've also gained a new appreciation for cat naps because I take at least two a day now._

 _ **BT:** How did you start modeling?_

 _ **JS:** It kind of just fell into my lap. I was 17 when I started modeling. I was recruited one day in the mall._

 _ **BT:** The mall? Really?_

 _ **JS:** Well, it's Los Angeles, there are scouts and recruiters everywhere. So this guy, Simon approached me and asked if I was interested in modeling. I said yes because I thought it'd be a more fun way to make money while all of my friends were working at the movie theater or in the mall. We did a few test shoots, and I was doing a photoshoot for Guess in New York a few weeks later. Everything happened so fast, and I've been going nonstop ever since, 4 years later._

 _ **BT:** What's something else that you've learned in these last few years just from being in this business?_

 _ **JS:** Keep your friends, your true friends and your family close. LA is a crazy city to live in, and it will swallow you up if you let it. On top of that, the modeling industry comes with its own set of chaos, so I thank God for my mom and my friends because they definitely keep me sane. I'd be going insane without them._

 _ **BT:** Let's talk about you in Hollywood._

 _ **JS:** Uh-oh. Should I be nervous?_

 _I could tell by her uneasy chuckle that was was nervous._

 _Just last week, Jade stirred a bit of controversy when she was caught on camera arguing with a female paparazzo. A punch was thrown and the insults traded back and forth between the women would make a sailor blush. Jade still had the cut on her knuckle to show for it._

 _ **BT:** You have quite the reputation in this town for being a bad girl. How do you feel about that?_

 _ **JS:** I don't think I'm a bad girl. I'm just a girl who was absolutely no tolerance for bullsh-t. If you get in my face with a huge camera, yell at me, and invade my personal space, I'm not going to react well. No normal person would. I don't know why people, celebrities in Hollywood are treated like pieces of property, obligated to be "on" 24/7. You don't have the right to follow me home. You don't have the right to open my car door to get a picture. You don't have the right to hunt my mother or my grandmother down to get to me. I already have a short fuse, and that's the quickest way to bring out that side of me who wants to kick your ass._

 _ **BT** : Do you think people have the wrong impression of you?_

 _ **JS:** Yeah. I don't know where people get the idea that I'm Satan's mistress from, but it's not true. Just don't f-ck with me, and we'll be cool._

 _ **BT:** Too bad everyone can't live by that philosophy._

 _ **JS:** I know! That world would-_

"What is with this generation and their phones?"

Beck's attention was taken away from his cell phone when he heard someone talking to him. He looked up and saw his agent, Max towering over him.

"I had to do something to keep me occupied because my agent was running late." Beck quipped. He locked his phone and put it in his pocket. "But you have all of my attention now."

"Thank you for meeting me here." Max sat down across from Beck and picked up his menu. "I wanted to get out of my office."

"No problem."

"You look like shit."

"I feel like shit." Beck rubbed his hand over his face. "I had a very long night."

"Vodka?"

"Tequila." Beck answered. "A lot of it."

The waitress came to their table with Beck's food: waffles, eggs, hash browns, bacon, and a cup of black coffee.

"Enjoy!"

Beck smiled at her. "Thank you."

She turned to Max. "Can I get you something, sir?"

"Just a coffee, black. Thank you."

The waitress walked off, leaving the two men alone.

Beck grabbed the maple syrup and doused his waffles in it. "So, what did you want to meet about, Max? What's up?"

"We might have a problem."

"What?"

"I've heard some rumblings, and you might be getting dropped from LA Med."

Beck dropped his fork. Suddenly, he didn't feel like eating.

"Excuse me?"

"You're boring." Max said, cutting to the chase.

"Is that a bad thing?"

"No, but in this case, yes. You're cookie cutter. You're nice, squeaky clean, and people find your character boring. Beck, you're a good actor, but it's like you're sleepwalking through scenes half the time."

Beck had been playing Scott Warner, the nice, humble medical student from New York on the hit, Emmy winning tv show LA Med. And last time he checked, his character was well liked.

"Okay, well tell the writers to write me better material."

Max awkwardly rubbed his eyebrow. "I've been your agent for what, 5 years now?" Beck nodded. "I've noticed a pattern when it comes to the type of roles you accept. The sweet, wholesome, nice guy."

"What's wrong with those types of roles?"

"Nothing! They're fine, but you're in a major rut. You're comfortable and it shows. You're phoning it in, you're not pushing yourself anymore. Maybe being let go from LA Med is a blessing in disguise."

Beck bit the inside of his cheek. He hadn't become boring and comfortable...had he? And if so, why was that so bad? Robert De Niro and Al Pacino were known for their crime movies. Liam Neeson did thrillers. Jennifer Aniston was good in wholesome, feel good romantic comedies. Samuel L. Jackson played the funny, quippy badass. Those A-list actors seemed to do just fine with being typecast.

"You're too young, and way too fucking talented to be stuck." Max continued. "I mean, Jonah Hill didn't just keep being the overweight comic relief in every movie he was in. He stepped out, did a drama and got an Oscar nom. Now it's like, 'Oh my goodness, the guy's got range! He can exceed our expectations,' and that's what I want for your career. You deserve the Emmy, or the Golden Globe, or the Oscar. Hell, why not all 3? And you won't get them if you stay in place."

"I'm not leaving the show." Beck said, stubbornly. "My contract isn't up until two more seasons, so you as my agent, are gonna have to present a different option. Call a meeting with Richard and-"

"I'm not going to call your boss and waste his time. Your character would really be dead."

Richard West, Beck's boss and the show runner-slash-head writer-slash-executive producer of LA Med ran his burgeoning television show empire with an iron fist. With 3 record breaking, Emmy winning, critically acclaimed shows currently under his belt, he was among the ranks with Shonda Rhimes and Dick Wolf.

Max pressed his thumb into his temple. "I'll figure something out. I always do."

"Thank you." Beck gestured to his food. "You're paying."

"Of course."

* * *

Meanwhile in Hollywood, Jade was running through the halls of her agent's massive building, which now that she was doing it, wasn't her best idea. She was still feeling the effects of her hangover and the urge to stop and vomit was increasing with each step she took.

Finally, Jade reached Charlie's office and saw her agent sitting behind her desk, reading a magazine.

"You're late." Charlotte quipped.

"I'm here, aren't I?"

"Sit down, Jade. We have a lot to discuss."

"Am I in trouble?"

"You might be." Charlotte grabbed her cell phone while Jade got comfortable in the plush chair across from her. "Until further notice, you aren't in charge of any of your social media accounts."

"What? Why not?"

"I know you aren't too fond of blogs and media outlets, but you are catching a bit of heat for your tweet the other day. Remember it?"

Jade shook her head. "Not at all, Charlie."

Charlotte grabbed her reading glasses and slipped them on. She picked up her phone again. "You tweeted a picture of Chris Noth and said, ' _Man, there's something about older guys_ ,' to which someone said, ' _Stop being an attention seeking whore,' and-_ "

"Oh yeah, I'm remembering this now."

"You replied with, ' _Shut the fuck up before I take your dad and become your stepmother, bitch. Since I like older guys so much_ ,' and you ended it with a winky face."

Jade shrugged. "What's so wrong with that?"

"Well the girl you were talking to was a 14 year old girl."

"Okay and?"

"And with further investigation, it was revealed that the girl's father died a few months ago. You look like a heartless bitch."

"Hey!"

"It's the truth. I've already sent a personal apology and a very lovely, very expensive bouquet of flowers to the young girl, in your name of course. You're welcome."

"Thank you."

"Jade, you're only 21. I don't want you fuck up what could be a fantastic career because you can't control your mouth or temper."

Jade crossed her arms over her chest. "She started it!"

"She's an eighth grader and you're not. Suck it up, babe."

"Okay, I'll be nicer on social media."

"You don't have to worry because you won't be in charge of the tweets for at least 6 weeks, or until this all dies down."

Jade opened her mouth to protest, but Charlotte stated her down. She sighed. "Fine, you win."

Charlotte smiled and put her phone down. "Now that we're done with that, I have some good news for you."

"Ooh, I love good news. Lay it on me, Charlie."

"Guess which amazing agent got her client a multi-episode story arc on LA Med?"

Jade's eyes widened as she processed the news. "Shut up, you did not!"

"I did. Ever since I met you, you've been wanting to break into the acting business and a Richard West show is a pretty freaking amazing first step."

Ever since Jade was a little girl, she had been interested in acting. As much as she loved modeling, she knew she didn't want to do it forever.

"So when do I shoot? Who am I playing? Will I sleep with anyone? Do I get to bitch slap a main character?"

"Your character's name is Margot, and she's described as having a troubled past. That's all I know, you know they are notorious for not releasing details."

Jade jumped out of her seat. "Charlie, this is the best news!" She ran to the other side of the desk and wrapped her arms around Charlotte. "I love you!"

"You better. Now you better be on your best behavior. Richard West has no tolerance for bullshit."

Jade nodded. "Yeah, I know. I swear I will not fuck this up."

"Good." Charlotte struggled to push Jade off of her. "Now get off of me, you reek of tequila." Just to piss her off, Jade squeezed the older woman tighter and kissed her cheek.

"I gotta go shout this from the rooftops or something!"

"Try to keep it hush, hush. We still have contracts to read and paperwork to sign."

"You're right, I don't want to jinx anything. But can I at least tell my mom?"

Charlotte nodded. "Yes. Karen and _only_ Karen!"

"Deal." Jade finally released Charlotte. "I gotta go, but we'll talk later."

"Bye. Go take a shower and drink a cup of coffee."

"Bye!" Jade grabbed her purse and practically bounced out of the office, nearly crashing into Charlotte's co-worker, Max. "Ooh, sorry!"

"It's fine." Max stepped aside so Jade could fully leave.

Charlotte looked up at Max and waved him in. "Hey, what brings you by?"

"Nothing really. I just wanted to see what you were up to."

"Same old, same old. Just dealing with my crazy ass clients."

"What did the lovely Jade Spencer do?"

"She just really needs to stay out of trouble. I know she doesn't like the bad girl identifier, but she just can't help but do dumb shit."

"Want to trade clients?" Max joked. "Beck, Beck Oliver, the guy is the exact opposite. He's like a vanilla ice cream cone."

"Speaking of Beck, he and Jade are gonna be working together."

"Really? On what?"

"She just landed a role on LA Med."

"Interesting." Max sat down in the chair across from Charlotte and started to think. "Any ideas as to what her character will be doing?"

"No clue. Why?"

"Okay, what I'm thinking might be a bit far fetched, but bear with me."

Charlotte leaned forward. "What do you have planned?"

"Is Jade single?

"Yes."

"Are you up for pulling off a publicity stunt?"

* * *

"Will you tell me what this great news is already? You're killing me!"

Karen Spencer was Jade's favorite person in the entire world. She was only twenty when she had Jade so in a sense, they grew up together. They were practically attached at the hip, as close as two people could be.

Jade laughed at her mother's impatience. The older woman was practically squirming in her seat. "Yes, I'm gonna tell. So I had a meeting with Charlotte this morning, and guess who is officially an actress?"

Karen gasped. "Sweetheart! Are you serious?"

"Yeah."

"What are you doing? A movie, tv show, short film?"

"TV show. I am going to be on LA Med!"

"What? That's huge!"

Jade smiled. It was taking every bit of restraint she owned to not shout it from the rooftops. But she was gonna wait until everything was set in stone.

"I don't have all of the details yet, but Charlotte told me my character's name is Margot, and it's a multi-episode thing, so obviously I'm gonna have a kick ass storyline."

"Baby, I am so proud of you. I know how hard you've worked and much you've wanted to act."

"I just hope I don't screw up. These people are professionals."

"And you aren't?"

"I am, but you know what I mean."

Karen walked into her kitchen. "Let's celebrate, darling! I'll cook, I'll cook whatever you want. We'll have a big dinner tomorrow with your aunts and cousins."

"Baked mac n cheese?"

"That's all?" Karen laughed. "No meat?"

Jade shrugged. "Maybe chicken? Steak or pot roast would be too heavy, and I don't want fish. And I want a double chocolate cake!"

"You've got yourself a deal, baby. So when do you start shooting?"

"I'm not sure. I don't know all of the details, or any for that matter. We still have contracts and all of that good stuff."

"That makes sense. This is gonna be such a fun experience for you. Think of all the connections you'll be making."

"I know. If I do good on this, I will impress Richard West and-" Jade was cut off by a loud crash. She turned her body so she could face her mother. "Mom, what happened?"

"I'm sorry, I just dropped my glass." She bent down to pick up the shards.

"Leave it alone. We'll sweep it up."

Karen picked herself up and leaned into the counter. "Did you say Richard West?"

"Yes, he's in charge of the entire show, so he'll be my boss. Isn't that cool?"

"I didn't know he was the show runner."

"People only care about the cast, not the behind the scenes people." Jade looked at her mom. "Mom, are you okay?"

"Yeah, baby. Why do you ask?"

"You're shaking."

Karen looked down at her hands, which were shaking uncontrollably. She balled them into fists and put them behind her back. "I think I've had too much coffee today."

"You need to drink some water or something."

"I will." Karen took a deep breath. "I'll be right back, I'm gonna go get the broom."

Karen quickly left her kitchen and walked down the hallway to her laundry room. Once alone, she slid down the wall with her head in her hands, which were still shaking. This was bad. This was really, really bad.

"Fuck."

* * *

The next morning, Jade trudged herself back into Charlotte's office, this time at what felt like the crack of dawn. She wasn't a morning person and everyone knew it.

After receiving a phone call at precisely seven-thirty in the morning, Jade rolled out of bed, barely changing out of her pajamas, got the biggest cup of coffee she could buy from Starbucks, and made it to Charlotte's office in forty minutes. That was a new personal record.

"Charlie, you better have Diana Von Furstenberg in this office or-"

Jade stopped talking when she saw two other people in the room with Charlotte.

"Good morning, Jade."

"Morning, Charlie." Jade greeted. "You didn't tell me this was going to be a group meeting."

Charlotte stood up, "Jade, say hello to Max and Beck."

Jade turned around to face the other people in the room. "Hi, it's nice to meet..." Her voice trailed off when she locked eyes with Beck. "Hi!"

Beck smiled warmly. "Hi, doll face."

"Are you...following me?"

Beck rolled his eyes. "Don't flatter yourself, sweetheart. I'm here because my agent said it was important and he had something big to tell me."

"You two know each other?" Charlotte asked, her eyes moving back and forth between Beck and Jade.

"No." Jade replied.

"Yes." Beck argued.

"We met a few days ago." Jade clarified. She sat down on the small ottoman near the door of the office, since the chairs were already occupied.

Charlotte nodded. "That's good. I think that helps us, Max."

"Helps you with what?"

"Jade, Beck plays Scott Warner on LA Med," Charlotte started. "So you guys are now co-stars."

"Oh. Oh!" Now that Jade was completely sober, she actually did recognize Beck. He was a Hollywood sweetheart, a heartthrob, every teenage girl's crush. "Beck Oliver, actor."

Beck extended his hand. "Jade Spencer, model."

"And actress now." Jade added, smirking. She grabbed Beck's hand and shook it.

"You two are going to be spending a lot of time together." Max anxiously rubbed his hands together. "Because as of right now, you two are dating."

Jade forcefully yanked her hand out of Beck's grasp and turned to Max. "We're _what_?"

Charlotte stepped in before Max could say anything. "Jade, meet your new "boyfriend", Beck. Beck, meet your new "girlfriend", Jade."

Beck crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't know about you guys, but last time I checked, I didn't sign up to be in some type of arranged marriage plot, Max."

"No, but you signed up to be a celebrity."

"I signed on to be an _actor_." Beck corrected.

Max scoffed sarcastically, "You can't have one without the other, Beck. This is what it takes to be on top, and stay on top."

"Whether you two know it or not, you need each other. Jade, you're a fucking loose canon nine times out of ten, and Beck, Max compared you to vanilla ice cream yesterday."

Beck glared at Max, who just shrugged in response. Vanilla? Ouch. He couldn't at least cookies and cream?

"Beck, you're gonna keep Jade grounded, and Jade's gonna bring the fun side out of you. Opposite's attract, right?"

"Wrong!" Jade snapped.

Ignoring Jade, Charlotte kept talking, "And since you guys will be working together, people are gonna want to tune in to your show. People eat that 'Co-stars Turned Lovers' shit up like they're at an all you can eat buffet."

"And Beck, you pretty much gave me carte blanche to help you keep your job." Max added.

"This is a win-win situation."

"What if we say no?" Jade challenged.

Charlotte tossed her phone to Jade. "Too late, because we already leaked it to the press a few hours ago."

"What?" Jade looked at the screen of Charlotte's sleek smart phone. Lo and behold, there are an article already loaded up, the title stating, ' _New Couple Alert?! Sources exclusively tell us that we should be keeping our eyes peeled for a Beck Oliver and Jade Spencer pairing.'_

"So you guys can say yes...or say yes."

"We're in." Beck said, not giving Jade the chance the argue.

"Speak for yourself, Oliver."

"We don't have a choice, Spencer." They were essentially pawns in the big chest game called Hollywood. "Do we have a choice?"

Max shook his head. "No. Well...no."

Beck stood up and walked over to Jade. He put his hands on her shoulders. "Like I said earlier, we're in."

Everyone else in the room turned to Jade to see what she would say.

She sighed, "I'll do a six week trial run. That's all I'm promising."

.

.

"So how are we gonna start this?" Beck asked, shoving his hands into his jean pockets. "I'm thinking we start by making it social media official. I post a picture of you with a sappy caption, or vice versa, or we-"

"We aren't gonna do anything until Charlie and Max tell us what to do." Jade said. She walked past the elevator and pushed the door open that led to the stairs.

"Walking down the stairs? Really?"

"Cardio is good for your heart."

Beck groaned. "We're on the tenth floor."

"You didn't have to follow me."

"Well, we can't have a conversation if we aren't together, babe."

"I'll see you in a few weeks when we start shooting for the show, and we can figure it out then."

Beck started to jog down the spiraling staircase to keep with Jade. "Gosh, you are an extremely fast walker. And, your idea to go MIA after announcing that we're dating is a horrible way to capitalize on momentum."

"What do you suppose we do, Beck?"

"I'm taking you out."

"You're asking me out on a date?"

"Yes I am. Dinner? Maybe a movie?"

"Fine. You can take me out to dinner. Somewhere fancy in Beverly Hills, where I can order lobster or steak for eighty bucks."

"Tonight?"

"Not tonight, no. I'm having dinner with my family."

"So tomorrow?"

Jade nodded. "Tomorrow is fine."

"Can you believe it? Yesterday, you pretty much shot down the chance of me ever seeing you again, and look at us now. I think it's fate."

"If fate was trying to annoy me."

Jade made it to the bottom of the last flight of stairs and pushed the heavy glass door open. She held it open for Beck to exit as well.

"Thanks."

"No problem. Give me your phone."

Beck reached into his pocket and grabbed his phone. He put it in the palm of Jade's hand. She dialed her own number and called it. After ending the call, she handed the phone back to Beck.

"Now we have each other's numbers. So call me later tonight, or I'll call you and-"

Before Jade could finish her sentence, Beck took a step forward, cupped her face and kissed her. It was nothing too deep and heavy, but it was enough to make Jade freeze in place. Before she could react, Beck pulled away and wrapped his arms around her.

"There's paps right across the street."

"Don't do that again." Jade hissed.

"Relax baby." Beck was obviously enjoying this. Even though she couldn't see his face, she could tell he was smiling. "Can't a guy just kiss his lovely girlfriend?"

Jade grabbed Beck's arm and slightly du her nails in. Beck wrapped his arms tighter around Jade's waist, unfazed by her nails probably breaking his skin. "Goodbye Beck."

And with that, Jade removed herself from his grasp and walked off, disappearing around the corner.

Beck smirked. He liked this plan already.

* * *

In a different part of Hollywood, Karen was having a major internal struggle. She was sitting in a spacious office, her legs shaking. In front of her was a simple door, ' **Richard West, CEO** ' printed on a chrome plate.

She had been sitting outside of his office for a good thirty minutes, listen to his chipper secretary talk on her cell phone.

She couldn't believe she was actually here. She wanted to throw up or pass out. It was never in her plan to see Richard West ever again as long as she lived.

"Ma'am, can I help you?"

Karen was snapped out of her thoughts by the secretary talking. The nameplate on her glass desk read ' **Jenna Wright** '. "Ma'am?" Ma'am? God, how old did she look?

"You've been sitting out here for a long time." Jenna said. "Can I help you with something?"

"Is Richard West in there?" Karen pointed to his office.

"Yes, do you have an appointment, Miss..."

"Karen. And no, I don't have an appointment. I was just hoping-"

"I'm sorry." Jenna tsked. "You can't see him without an appointment."

"But it's really important."

"I can take a message for you." Jenna suggested.

Karen shook her head. "No, what I have to tell him only needs to be known by us two, but thank you for offering." She picked her handbag up off of the floor and stood. "I'm just going to go."

"I can tell him that you stopped-"

"Jenna, who are you talking...to? Oh my God, Karen? Karen Spencer?"

Richard West was now standing in front of her, in the flesh. He was still as tall as she remembered. His hair was greying at the temples and he had a few wrinkles on his forehead, but other than that, he looked exactly the same.

"It's me." Karen croaked out.

Richard took a few long strides over to her and wrapped his arms around her. She closed her eyes and hugged him back, and for a moment, she was 20 years old again. She pressed her face into his shoulder, taking in his scent. Coffee and cologne, something she couldn't put her finger on.

"Wow. It's been...a really long time, Care Bear."

Karen couldn't help but chuckle and roll her eyes at her old nickname. She hated it, but that never stopped Richard. "Don't call me that."

Richard let go of Karen and took a step back, but still held onto her hand. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you, but your secretary said I needed an appointment."

Richard dismissed that with a hand wave. "Nonsense." He turned to Jenna. "Karen Spencer doesn't need an appointment. She can see me whenever, okay Jenna?"

"Got it, Mister West."

He turned his focus back to Karen, her hand still in his. "So what brings you by?"

"Can we go somewhere...private?"

"Of course." He led her into his office and shut the door behind him.

Karen looked around the large room, taking it all in. The first thing she noticed was the amazing view Richard had of the Hollywood sign. The office was big. There was a flat screen television mounted on the wall, a large black couch and two chairs with a glass coffee table in the center, awards in a glass display case, pictures of various celebrities posted on the wall, a door which Karen assumed led to a closet or a bathroom, and a desk full of papers.

"Sit down, please. Make yourself comfortable." Karen sat on the couch. "Want something to drink? A water? Soda?"

"No thank you, I'm fine."

"Okay." Richard sat down next to Karen. He smiled. "How is it possible that you are still just as beautiful as you were twenty years ago?"

Karen put her head down, bashfully. "Now you're just buttering me up."

"I'm serious. You're beautiful, Care Bear."

"I've always hated that nickname."

"You secretly loved it. So, what are you doing? How have you been?"

"Good! I'm actually the proud owner of my own art gallery downtown. Before that, I was an art dealer."

"So you finished school and got your degree in art history?"

"Yup."

"Congrats. I might have to come check it out one of these days, if I'm ever allowed to leave this place."

"Work is busy?"

"Busy is an understatement. It's never ending."

"When we first met, you were the assistant writer on a failed law procedural, now look at you, running your own empire."

"You know I couldn't be someone's lapdog for too long. I have to be my own boss."

"Speaking of your television takeover, my daughter is going to be working for you."

"Oh?"

Karen nodded. "Jade Spencer."

"Oh, Jade! Beautiful girl, and surprisingly a really good actress. I saw a reel of hers and I told my casting people to get her."

"She's great. She's been acting since she was a kid, but she got so swept up in modeling and it fell to the wayside, but I know she's excited."

"Now that you said she's your daughter, I see it now. She's a spitting image of you. She's 21, right?" Karen nodded. "You must've had her right after we...disconnected."

"Yeah, I did." Karen swallowed the lump forming in her throat. This was now or never. "I had her eight months afterwards, to be exact."

Karen's word went over Richard's head at first. She stared at him, waiting to see if he understood. The look on his face changed and in that instance, Karen knew that he knew. "Wait a minute...eight months...Karen, what are you trying to say?"

"Jade's your daughter."

* * *

Guys, this story has been in the back of my mind for at least 3 months, driving me freaking insane, so I had to get it out. Any who…hope you enjoy! :)


	2. Chapter 2

_Karen paced around the hospital waiting room, anxious. She wanted to throw up. She wanted to cry. She wanted to scream._

 _Her older sister, Kathy watched as she paced the floor. Karen could never keep still if something was bothering her. "Karen, you're making me dizzy. Please stop pacing."_

 _"I can't." Karen said, continuing to walk around. She kept her head down and counted the tiles beneath her. One white, one blue, and so on and so forth. "I need to stay focused."_

 _This night started out great. Karen was at a restaurant with her friends, celebrating her twentieth birthday when her boyfriend of six months, Richard collapsed onto the floor and wouldn't wake up._

 _"Come sit down!" Kathy ordered, raising her voice slightly. "You look like a crazy person." Karen reluctantly did what she was told and took a seat next to her sister, who then grabbed her hand. "I know you're scared."_

 _"Terrified." Karen clarified. "Absolutely terrified, Kath."_

 _"He's going to be okay."_

 _"He has to be." Karen said stubbornly. "He can't leave me. Not right now."_

 _Everything had been going so well with them. Karen was thriving at school, Richard was getting a lot of praise for his writing with the head of the network, their relationship seemed more solid than ever. And it just felt like the rug had been pulled from under her._

 _"He won't." Kathy promised._

 _They sat there in silence for a few minutes, watching as nurses, doctors, patients and their families all moved around the emergency room._

 _"Can someone please give me information on Richard West?"_

 _Karen's head snapped up at the mention of Richard's name. She turned around to find the source, and saw a petite blonde woman, holding a chubby toddler on her hip, talking to a receptionist. Karen had never seen her before. Who was she?_

 _"Ma'am, she'll be here to talk to you soon." The receptionist replied._

 _"Thank you." The woman sat down across from Kathy and Karen and readjusted the restless baby in her arms._

 _"You said you were here for Richard West?" Kathy asked cautiously. The woman had a sparkly ring on her finger and a baby in her arms. Red flags were coming from every direction._

 _"Yes. Why, do you guys know him or something?"_

 _"I'm his g–" Karen was cut off by Kathy squeezing her knee._

 _"We work with him, on the set of Law of Land." Kathy said, only telling a half truth. She worked with Richard, not Karen._

 _"Oh how lovely. I'm Mia, Richard's wife."_

 _If she wasn't sitting down already, Karen would've fainted. Her knees buckled and went weak at those words. Richard had a wife? How could that be? How could he have a wife and a girlfriend?_

 _"Nice to meet you." Kathy said._

 _"Do you guys know what happened?" Mia asked. "He got into a car accident, but that's all his doctor told me."_

 _"We don't know." Kathy replied truthfully. "We were at a restaurant, hanging out after work and he collapsed."_

 _"Was he drinking?"_

 _"Yeah." Kathy said._

 _"Typical Dick." Mia scoffed, slightly annoyed and embarrassed. "He's always drunk these days. All he needs is some food and water, and he'll be as good as new."_

 _"He has a drinking problem?" Karen asked, speaking up for the first time in a while. She knew Richard liked to drink. She had seen his drunk side plenty of times, but she never thought of it as a problem. "This is a common thing?"_

 _"I shouldn't be talking about this, I'm sorry." The woman looked frazzled. "Where is his doctor?"_

 _"Missus West?"_

 _Mia looked up and saw a middle aged woman walking over to her. "Hi, are you my husband's doctor?"_

 _"I'm Doctor Evans, yes I am your husband's doctor."_

 _"Is he okay? What's going on?"_

 _"Your husband has alcohol poisoning. We had to pump his stomach and give him a breathing tube."_

 _"Is he still unconscious?" Karen asked. Mia cut her a harsh glare for speaking. She wasn't family, why was she talking?_

 _"Why don't we go somewhere private to talk." Mia suggested, not wanting Kathy and Karen to hear any more than they already did._

 _"Follow me, Missus West."_

 _Mia walked off with the doctor, leaving the siblings alone. With them out of sight, Karen ran off in the opposite direction. She found the nearest trash can and emptied the contents of her stomach._

 _Kathy jumped out of her seat and followed her sister. Not really knowing what to do, she just held Karen's hair back._

 _"He has a wife. A wife, Kath!"_

 _"I'm so sorry, I didn't know. You know I would've never introduced him to you if I knew he was married."_

 _"He has a baby, a tiny little toddler." Karen added, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She sat down on the floor, with her back against the wall. "I'm a home wrecker."_

 _"No you aren't." Kathy protested, getting on the floor as well. "You didn't know he was married."_

 _"It doesn't matter."_

 _"Yes it does."_

 _"How could he do this to me? He can't do this to me."_

 _Karen's head was spinning. Her throat was on fire, her chest so tight, she thought it might burst out of her chest. Her entire life had been tilted on it's axis today and she didn't know what to do._

 _"What we're going to do is pretend that asshole doesn't exist anymore."_

 _"Kathy, you work with him."_

 _"So? If he thinks we're going to be friends after this, he's wrong. I will completely ice him out. From this day forward, Richard West does not exist."_

 _Karen shook her head. "It's not that simple."_

 _"I know you love him, but please don't tell me you're going to forgive this asshole and pretend this never happened."_

 _"Of course I'm not."_

 _"Good. So why would it-"_

 _"I'm pregnant." Karen confessed, shutting_ _her sister up._

 _"Are you serious?"_

 _"I found out a few days ago. I saw my doctor this morning to confirm, and I was going to tell Rich tonight, but this happened."_

 _Kathy looked at her sister sympathetically. "Oh, K."_

 _"What am I going to do? I'm a sophomore in college, I work a crappy job in a museum, my child's father is a thirty year old married man, who_ _practically binge drank himself to death tonight. Mom and dad are going to murder me, they don't even know about Richard!"_

 _"How am I going to finish school with a baby? How am I going to raise one? I don't even wake myself up early enough to get to class most of the time. And how is Richard going to care for a baby if he's a drunk?"_

 _"Take a deep breath." Kathy instructed. "Do you know how far along you are?"_

 _"Six weeks." Karen answered._

 _"Do you want to have this baby? Because you don't have to."_

"Kathy, you aren't suggesting what I think _you're suggesting."_

 _Kathy shrugged. "I'm just reminding you that you have options."_

 _"No, I want my baby. I want to have this baby."_

 _"Fine. Then we'll figure it out."_

 _"How?"_

 _"We'll figure it out." Kathy repeated. "Trust me."_

 _._

"Karen, I need you to run that by me one more time. You're saying Jade is my daughter?"

Karen had been sitting in silence for the past ten minutes. Richard had been talking to her, or talking at her, but she didn't say anything.

She suddenly felt like jumping out of her seat and running away. She went twenty one years without dealing with this, she could handle twenty one more.

"Karen? Answer me, please." Karen didn't say anything. She just sat there. "KAREN!" That made her flinch.

"This is your first time yelling at me, you know. You usually handled me with kit gloves. You never even let anyone else yell at me."

"You're telling me that I have a daughter?"

Karen inhaled deeply. "Yes. I'm saying Jade is your daughter, you are her father."

"But I mean...how is this even-"

"Possible?" Karen finished. "Well you and I were having sex, so..." Richard cut Karen a harsh glance. "Sorry, that wasn't an appropriate response."

"You got pregnant, and you kept it a secret. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I couldn't tell you!"

"Why not? Did you lose your voice for twenty one fucking years, Karen?"

Karen stood up and sat back down, not knowing what to do. She regretted even opening her mouth at this point.

"What I did, was for a damn good reason, Richard!"

"What? What could you possibly have to say that would justify this?"

Karen stood up and circled the couch. "I was going to tell you that I was pregnant on the day of my twentieth birthday party. Do you remember what happened that night or were you so fucking out of it, that you've blocked it out?"

Richard opened his mouth to reply, but he quickly closed it.

Richard's face fell as he remembered that night. It was the last time he had ever heard from or seen Karen.

"I'm sorry."

"We were together for six months and you didn't even think to mention that you were married. Or had a child. How could you?"

"I knew that if I told you, you'd want nothing to do with me, and that wasn't an option I was willing to settle for."

"So you made me your mistress. Classy."

"You were so much more to me than that."

Karen shook her head, not wanting to fall for this man's charms again. "Save it!"

"It's the truth. My marriage to Mia was a disaster. My son was the only bright spot to come out of it."

"And even if I was okay with being your woman on the side or you weren't married, I wasn't going to raise Jade with a man who had a drinking problem."

"I've been sober for twenty years. After that incident, I went to rehab."

"Congratulations." Karen said sincerely. "That's one hell of an accomplishment."

"You would've known if you didn't cut me out of your life."

"That wasn't a risk I was willing to take. I was scared and I wasn't going to have my daughter raised in upheaval. I'm sorry."

Richard sat down, trying to process all of this. It felt like the wind had just been knocked out of him.

The woman he had been in love with all those years ago just re-entered his life. With a daughter in tow, his daughter to be exact.

"Does she know that I'm her dad?" Richard asked.

Karen shook her head. "No. No one knows except Kathy, not even my other siblings."

"Were you ever planning on telling her about me?"

"I don't know. When she was younger, I told her that you weren't in the right state to be a father. Eventually she just stopped asking."

"So why are you here?"

"Because she's going to be working with you."

"So you wanted to get the preemptive strike before the shit hits the fan." Richard added. Karen nodded. "Are you going to tell her?"

"I don't know." Karen answered truthfully.

Richard didn't know what to say or how to feel. He had another kid, a daughter. With Karen. Part of him wanted to be excited just for that alone. But the other part of him was furious. She robbed him of twenty-one years with his daughter. Not just him, but his entire family. His deceased father and aging mother missed out. His son, his siblings and other extended family entered his mind as well.

Then the sadness and guilt settled in. He knew Karen had a point. Richard was in no condition to be a parent back then. He was lying to everyone and leading a double life. He was struggling with alcoholism, despite the fact that he was able to keep up a shaky facade for the most part. But did that mean he had no right to know about his child?

"I would've done whatever I needed to do for you." Richard said.

"Really? Because your own wife wasn't enough back then, so how could I have possibly been?" Karen countered.

"Because you're you."

That caught Karen off guard, but she steadied herself. "That sounds nice and all, and it probably would've been a panty dropper twenty one years ago, but cut the shit, Rich. You wouldn't have changed for me. You changed for you and you alone. The way it's supposed to be."

"Fair enough, Care Bear."

"Stop calling me that."

"I'm sorry. Old habits die hard."

They sat in heavy silence for a long time, not knowing what to say. While it felt like a weight had been lifted off of her chest, she was still anxious.

"I'm not going to tell her." Richard said. "I won't be a creep and stalk her around set, I'll remain a complete professional."

Karen sighed in relief. "Thank you."

"No problem. Besides, I think you should be the one to tell her. After all, I am just a stranger."

"And I will."

"Good. Sooner rather than later. You've had her entire lifetime to keep it to yourself."

"That sounds fair."

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go talk to my writing team. You can see yourself out."

"Rich, I–"

"Nice to see you again, Karen. Have a nice day." And with that, Richard quickly hurried out of the office, leaving Karen alone.

* * *

"Why did I have to find out that you're dating Beck Oliver on the fucking Internet?"

"Hello to you too, Ryder." Jade greeted, dryly. "I'm doing great, thanks for asking."

"Hi Jade." Ryder greeted, pushing the door open to her condo further, so he and their other friend Tori could enter. He kissed Jade's cheek. "Why did I have to find out about you dating Beck Oliver on the Internet?"

Jade sighed. Charlotte all but made Jade take a blood oath, swearing her to secrecy about her fake relationship. She couldn't tell a soul that it wasn't real. But lying to her best friends was going to be hard.

"I'm sorry, but it was really sudden. We went out a few times, and people got wind of it, news spread, and tabloids caught on."

"How long has it been going on?" Tori asked.

"Not long." Jade said shrugging. "A few weeks."

"How'd you meet him?"

"Club."

"Classy." Jade gave Ryder the finger in reply.

"Well I fucked him on the first night too, so I'd say I'm super classy." Jade replied, Ryder's sarcasm rolling off of her. Nothing he said upset her, because she could give as well as she got.

"You're so vulgar, Jade."

"You love it."

"Touché."

"But that's not why I called you guys over here. I have major news, way bigger than sleeping with Beck Oliver."

"What?"

"Guess who's going to be starring on LA Med?"

"No way."

Jade nodded. "Yes way. Jade Spencer, four episodes as Margot Philips on LA Med. Char sent the first script over this morning.

"Have you gone through it yet?" Ryder asked, smiling. He was proud of his friend and they way her face lit up when she talked about acting was a great sight to see.

"My character is smart and cool and she's younger than the rest of the characters, but in my head, she's totally the most mature and wise beyond her years. I've seen the crazy shit they've pulled the past two seasons."

"This is amazing!" Tori exclaimed. "You're going to be working for Richard West! You're going to be acting with Bella Andrews and Beck...you're going to be working with Beck Oliver?"

"I guess so. Well not _with_ him, because my character doesn't have scenes with his. Not yet at least. Who knows what the next script will call for."

"So did you get the job because he's your boyfriend now?" Tori asked.

"What, no. How could you even ask me that?"

"Sorry, it's just...you didn't even tell us that you were auditioning for this role."

"I didn't audition, they poached me." Jade clarified.

"...Because you're Beck Oliver's new girlfriend?" Ryder added.

"No! Me seeing Beck Oliver and me getting to be on the show have absolutely nothing to do with each other. Believe it or not, I take this shit serious. I'm a professional, I went to performing arts school, with you guys in case you forgot. My first love has always been acting. I wasn't a nepotism hire and I don't need to sleep with anyone for roles."

The natural high she was experiencing a few minutes ago was quickly fading away. If her own best friends assumed she only got the role because of Beck, what would the rest of the industry think of her?

"Jade, we didn't mean to insult you." Tori said, frowning. "We know you're a great actress, we know how much you care about the craft."

Jade didn't respond. Instead she walked into her kitchen. "I need a drink."

.

Later that night, Jade couldn't sleep. She was still a bit upset about her conversation earlier that day with Tori and Ryder. She knew that they were excited for her and didn't mean any harm, but it still hurt her feelings that their first instinct was to assume that she didn't get this role on her own merits.

Turning over in bed, she grabbed her cell phone. 12:35 AM was staring back at her in big white writing. She unlocked her phone and scrolled through her contacts until she found Beck's number.

The phone rang for a long time and Jade contemplated just hanging up. But after a few more rings, he did pick up.

"Hello?"

"Beck?"

"Yes."

"It's me, Jade."

"I have caller ID, Jade, I know it's you."

"That was kind of dumb of me."

"It's fine. Are you okay? It's late and I'm in bed."

"I'm just...I don't know how I feel about this anymore. This stunt, I mean. I don't think it's a good idea."

"What's wrong?"

"The story of us dating drops a week before I start shooting LA Med. I told my friends this morning and they assumed I only got the role because of you. These are my best friends, if they think so low of me, what will everyone else think? You can afford to screw everyone in Hollywood, I can't."

"Take a deep breath." Beck said. "Relax."

"I can't relax."

"Try." Jade did what she was told. "The damage is already done. Everyone thinks we're dating already, so we can't really pull out of this now."

"That's not settling." Jade deadpanned. "We're trapped like cattle."

"Don't make it sound so bad, angel face."

"I just...I don't want my big break to be overshadowed by you. By us."

"Maybe it's not my place to say this because I'm not in your shoes, but so what? People in this town are going to be brutal regardless. You're young, you're gorgeous, and you're new to the acting scene, so everyone already hates you. They're going to accuse you of sleeping with everyone, from me, to the janitor on set, to Richard West himself. It's not the truth. As long as you know what it is, everything else is background noise. Prove to everyone that you're meant to be here."

"And not to sound arrogant or anything, but Richard doesn't hire bad actors." Beck quipped. "If you were picked, it's because you deserve it. Remember that, okay?"

"Okay. I'm sorry for calling you this late."

"Well what are fake boyfriends for?" Beck quipped.

"Thank you."

"Calm your nerves, Spencer, we haven't even gotten to the fun part yet."

"What's that?"

"We do our table read and start filming next week. You get to meet everyone and I'll take you on a tour of the entire lot."

Jade felt herself buzz with excitement over hearing that. "I can't wait."

"Buckle up, because things will be moving pretty fast for the next month or so. Things can get hectic."

"I happen to thrive under pressure." Jade said confidently. There was nothing more she loved than a bit of a challenge.

"That's the spirit!"

Jade yawned. "Okay, I should let you go back to bed. Good night."

"Sweet dreams, Spencer."

* * *

"Don't throw up, don't throw up, don't throw up, don't throw." Jade chanted to herself as she stood in the middle of the studio lot.

Richard had his own section of the huge lot, where all of his shows were shot. People were moving around Jade, she doubted that they even noticed her standing there.

The week had flown by. Now it was Jade's first day on set. And to say she was nervous was an understatement.

Where was Beck? He was supposed to meeting her before she met everyone else. She glanced down at her wrist to check the time on her watch. 8:33 am. Three minutes late.

"Jade! There you are." Jade's head whipped around and she saw Beck sprinting towards her. "Hey!"

"Thank God you're here, I was beginning to think you forgot about me."

"No, I stopped at craft services to get coffee." Beck explained. He draped his arm around Jade's shoulder and pulled her in close. "Follow me."

He led her around the busy lot until they made it to a building with 'L.A. Med' in big, bold letters. Walking through the door, she was met by a blast of cold air. The second thing she noticed was the sets. The classroom where all of the main characters met in the first episode, the lab where Nadia caused an explosion in the first season finale, the fake hospital, all of it. She was really here.

"Wow." Jade gasped, looking around.

"Pretty cool, huh?"

"Cool is an understatement."

"Let's meet the rest of your new cast mates."

They walked to another area on set, a bedroom where everyone was, chatting and mulling over scripts.

"Morning everyone." Beck greeted brightly, taking his sunglasses off. "I have someone I want you to meet."

"Beck, it's not take your girlfriend to work day."

Jade scanned the room and quickly located the source. It was Bella Andrews, the lead actress on the show. Jade loved her work.

"Bella hi, I'm such a big fan of yours." Jade gushed. "It's an honor to meet you."

"I'm sure it is."

Jade was taken aback by the harshness in the other woman's tone. Yikes.

"Moving on...Jade, this is Bella, Robbie, Cat, and André. Guys, meet Jade."

"You're so pretty!" Cat gushed, her bright red hair getting in her face as she talked.

"I'm Cat. Or Caterina."

"I'm Jade. Just Jade."

"Jade, it's a closed set." Bella said. "So while it was nice to see you, Beck, you should get her out of here. You know how Richard feels about stragglers and hang arounds on set."

"Excuse me?" Now Jade was getting annoyed. "I'm not a straggler."

"Morning everyone!" A big voice boomed through the set. "It's the start of a lovely work week."

Jade turned around and saw Richard West making his way towards them, a petite woman trailing behind him, holding a cup of coffee and a stack of papers.

The man was a lot taller in person. He was dressed casually in jeans and a "UCLA Dad" t-shirt, but despite that, his presence was powerful and commanding.

"Morning." Everyone grumbled back.

"Energy, people! I want energy! You guys know I don't tolerate subpar attitudes on my-"

Richard stopped talking mid-sentence as his eyes landed on Jade. He had to stop himself from gasping out loud as he looked at her. She was a beauty, just like her mother, and her resemblance to the older woman nearly knocked the wind out of him.

"Jade." Richard whispered, locking eyes with her. "Wow."

He didn't know what to say to her. He wanted to say so many things yet no words were coming out of his mouth, and at this point, he knew he looked like a stammering fool.

Thankfully, Jade was the one to break the ice. "Richard West, it is a pleasure to meet you." She said, extending her hand.

"Pleasure is all mine. Believe me." Richard took a step forward and wrapped his arms around Jade, pulling her in for a tight hug. Shocked, she hugged him back.

Everyone else stood around, a bit shocked. Richard wasn't a hugger, by any means. Why was Jade so special?

Richard didn't seem to mind the other people in the room. All he knew was that he had a daughter, and she was in his arms after not knowing about her for over twenty years. He'd hug her for the rest of his life if he could.

Resisting the urge to smell her hair or do anything else ridiculous and creepy, Richard reluctantly pulled out of the hug and regained his composure.

"You two know each other?" Bella asked.

"Jade the newest character in the show." Richard explained. "Meet our Margot Philips."

"Why didn't you tell us Jade would be playing her?" Robbie asked.

"I wanted it to be a surprise." Richard said.

"She may only have a few lines in this week's episode, but she'll be sticking around for at least a month, so I wanted her to be here today."

Cat smiled. "Yay, it'll be so much fun having another girl on set." She reached forward and grabbed Jade's hand. Come follow me, we'll sit together in the conference room.

"Okay."

The two ladies walked off, leaving everyone else.

"Alright guys, lets get to work." Richard said, clapping his hands together. "Go ahead, I'll meet you in there."

Everyone else started walking off. Bella fell into step with Beck and bumped his shoulder. "So Richard totally has a hard on for your new girlfriend."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh come on. Don't act like you didn't see the way Richard looked at her. And the way he hugged her? He's never hugged anyone on this set."

"Bella, you're crazy."

"No, I don't have my head in the clouds. You could cut that tension with a knife."

Beck rolled his eyes. "Okay, if you say so."

Bella frowned. She wasn't a fan of being brushed off and made to be delusional. She knew what she saw. Something was up.

"Fine, don't believe me. Suit yourself."

Once everyone else was gone and Richard was all alone, he let out a heavy sigh. His entire body felt tense. Being in such a close vicinity to Jade was stressful. He thought he would be able to do it, but he didn't know how long he'd manage. It was times like this that made him wish he could drink.

"Mister West, everyone is waiting for you."

Richard turned around and saw his assistant Toni staring at him, expectantly.

"Okay, I'm coming."

Karen needed to tell the truth. And fast.


End file.
